Virginia Morales
Multilingual Education Program Supervisor
WIDA Standards, Assessments, and Professional Learning
Contact Information
Washington is part of the 41-state WIDA Consortium that promotes educational equity for multilingual learners through language development standards, assessments, and high-quality professional learning for P-12 educators.
WIDA Standards
Washington State has adopted the WIDA English Language Development Standards Framework starting with the 2021–22 school year. WIDA also offers Spanish Language Development Standards and Spanish Language Arts Standards which are currently under consideration for adoption for dual language programs.
- View and download the WIDA ELD Standards Framework, 2020 Edition
- Order a spiral-bound, printed copy of the ELD Standards from the WIDA Store
- Watch this video for an Overview of the WIDA ELD Standards Framework
- Download and read the At-a-Glance WIDA ELD Standards Framework
WIDA Assessments
Beginning in August 2021, multilingual learners in Washington state will be screened and tested annually using WIDA assessments. The following links provide more information on screening and testing in Washington state:
- English Language Proficiency Screeners
- English Language Proficiency Annual Assessments
- Alternate English Language Proficiency Assessment
WIDA Professional Learning
As members of the WIDA Consortium, all educators in Washington State public schools have access to high-quality professional learning through WIDA. These opportunities include self-paced eWorkshops and live or virtual facilitated workshops led by WIDA professional development specialists. To access these workshops as well as all required WIDA assessment trainings, educators must log in through the WIDA Secure Portal.
All WIDA assessment materials, required trainings for screeners and assessments, and professional learning courses are in the WIDA Secure Portal, which can be accessed by all K-12 educators in Washington public schools. To get a Secure Portal account:
- Email WIDA Help and ask to set up a WIDA Secure Portal account for assessments and eLearning. You must use your district email address.
- You will receive an email from WIDA Client Services Center informing you that an account has been set up.
- Go to: WIDA Login webpage.
- Select: WIDA Secure Portal
- Login to the WIDA Secure Portal with your district email address and password.
The following self-paced WIDA eWorkshops are available from September 1, 2021, to August 31, 2022, to support effective instruction and language development for multilingual learners. All learning opportunities have free clock hours and are available to all K-12 educators.
To earn free clock hours, use the following links to register through pdEnroller. Once you have finished the eWorkshop, complete the pdEnroller survey for that course. After you complete the survey, OSPI will process your clock hours and they will be automatically posted to your E-Certification file.
- Engaging Multilingual Learners in Science: Making Sense of Phenomena
- The WIDA Standards Framework: A Collaborative Approach
- School Improvement Planning for Multilingual Learners
- Classroom Teachers: Classroom Teachers: Engaging Multilingual Newcomers
- Developing Language for Learning in Mathematics
- Social Studies: Engaging Multilingual Learners through Inquiry
- Home Languages in the Classroom
- Leading for Equity: Classroom Walkthrough
- WIDA Microlearning: Equity-Focused PLCs: A Resource Guide and Study Guides
Washington state is offering the following WIDA facilitated workshops in the 2021-22 school year led by WIDA professional development specialists. Space is limited for these sessions and free clock hours are provided. For more information and to register for sessions, please use the following links to pdEnroller:
- Planning with the WIDA ELD Standards Framework – Session #5
- School Leaders: Ensuring Equity for Multilingual Learners – Session #1
- School Leaders: Ensuring Equity for Multilingual Learners – Session #2
- Scaffolding Learning through Language – Session #1
- Scaffolding Learning through Language – Session #2
- Mathematical Meaning-Making: Collaborating for Equity
WIDA Resources
WIDA offers many additional resources to facilitate sharing information on standards, assessments, and professional learning including:
- ACCESS for ELLs – Parent letters, handouts, and guides to explain what ACCESS is, who takes ACCESS, and how to understand the score report.
- Focus Bulletins – WIDA publications that explore issues in the field of ELL education.
- Family Resources – Material that can help families understand the range of WIDA assessments, as well as what it means to be an English learner.
- Research and Technical Reports – Scholarly reports and briefs written by WIDA researchers about issues of interest in the field of ELL education.
Visit the WIDA Resource Library for a complete list of resource topics and types.
For resources in Spanish, visit WIDA's Spanish Resource Library.